Chapter 250

Ye Chutang gazed at the sky filled with Kongming lanterns, her heart pounding violently.

“Azhou, you went out this afternoon just to release Kongming lanterns for me?”

Qi Yanzhou saw no delight on Ye Chutang’s face, and his heart immediately tightened.

“Mm. Do you like them?”

He wanted to make the woman he loved happy on the Qixi Festival, but he had no idea how.

It was his elder sister, Qi Qingyu, who had given him the idea.

Sensing Qi Yanzhou’s unease, Ye Chutang turned to him with a smile curving her lips.

“I like them. I really do.”

She might be rational by nature, but she would never reject romance.

After all, life needed a sense of ceremony.

Seeing that Ye Chutang truly liked the lanterns, Qi Yanzhou’s anxious heart finally settled. He rose to his feet and held out his hand.

“I have another gift for you.”

Ye Chutang placed her hand in his and let him lead her to the railing of the octagonal pavilion.

“Look down.”

She gripped the railing and leaned over.

In the clearing below the mountain, lanterns had been arranged in the shape of a crabapple blossom.

The night breeze stirred the flames, making them flicker and sway as though the flower itself were dancing in the wind. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

Moved by the thought Qi Yanzhou had put into everything, Ye Chutang hooked her arms around his neck and breathed softly beside his ear.

“I like every gift you’ve given me. Tonight, I’ll give myself to you as a gift. Would that be all right?”

At her words, Qi Yanzhou’s face turned bright red. He had no idea what to do with his hands or feet.

Stammering, he said, “Atang, you… you’re… pregnant.”

“It’ll be fine once the first three months have passed.”

Her warm breath brushed against his ear, making his heart itch with longing.

His heart pounded violently, as though it might burst from his chest.

He pushed away the seductive Ye Chutang and struggled to calm the stirrings in his body.

“Atang, this isn’t appropriate right now.”

Although they had already been intimate once, that had been under unavoidable circumstances.

He wanted to give the woman he loved an unforgettable wedding night. He didn’t want to rush through it carelessly.

Ye Chutang wasn’t determined to sleep with him.

She had merely felt that the mood was right and that it was a suitable time for a little intimacy between a man and a woman.

Since Qi Yanzhou was unwilling, she wouldn’t force him.

“All right, next time.”

Worried that his refusal had hurt Ye Chutang, Qi Yanzhou hurried to explain.

“Atang, it’s not that I don’t want to be with you… I just want to wait until we reach Tianshan Commandery and have settled down. Then we can hold another wedding, complete every ceremony properly, and make it perfect.”

Ye Chutang understood his considerations and wasn’t angry.

She kissed the handsome man on the cheek.

“All right. I’ll listen to you.”

Then she looked at the Kongming lanterns drifting farther away.

“Let’s go down the mountain.”

Qi Yanzhou kissed her forehead before carrying her down the mountain on his back.

They had not gone far when the kerosene in the glazed magpie lantern burned out and its flame went dark.

Fortunately, the lights below the mountain were bright enough that they could still see clearly.

Lying on Qi Yanzhou’s back, Ye Chutang grew drowsy.

Partway down, Qi Yanzhou suddenly slipped, and his body began to fall backward.

The mountain path was narrow, with jagged rocks all around. If they fell, they would certainly be seriously injured.

He reached for a branch beside him, hoping to steady himself.

With a sharp crack, the branch snapped.

Ye Chutang woke instantly.

“Let go!”

Qi Yanzhou obeyed.

Ye Chutang immediately shifted her body, placing both hands on the ground. Using the momentum, she moved upward and made room for Qi Yanzhou.

Realizing what she intended, Qi Yanzhou struck the ground with one palm the moment she moved aside. Using the force, he rose and leaped backward.

His palm felt slick.

Oil!

The thought had barely crossed his mind when he heard a dense whistling of air.

“Atang, be careful!”

Qi Yanzhou instantly shielded Ye Chutang behind him. He picked up the broken branch and used it as a weapon, sweeping aside the arrows raining down upon them.

Ye Chutang picked up an arrow that had fallen to the ground, retreated two steps, and hurled it down the mountain with her internal energy.

A scream rang out.

The rain of arrows became less dense.

With one hand, Qi Yanzhou deflected the incoming arrows. With the other, he snapped thin branches and scattered them across the mountain path to provide traction.

“Atang, stay close to me.”

Ye Chutang acknowledged him and followed closely while gathering arrows from the ground.

The next time she hurled an arrow, she killed several people. Then she heard someone shout, “Retreat!”

She and Qi Yanzhou called out in unison, “Pursue them!”

The moment the words left their mouths, flames sprang up at the entrance to the mountain path below. The fire rapidly spread uphill.

Someone had ignited the oil that had been poured across the path.

Qi Yanzhou gathered his internal energy and hurled the branch in his hand down the mountain.

The branch transformed into a deadly blade and pierced through the body of the person who had started the fire, taking his life.

Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang leaped onto the trees on either side of the path and swiftly descended the mountain, using the bright firelight to see.

As soon as they reached the foot of the mountain, the abbot of Jing’an Temple noticed that something was wrong and hurried over with a group of monks.

Qi Yanzhou said to Abbot Minghui, “Abbot Minghui, put out the fire quickly. My wife and I will go after the arsonists.”

Although the trees on the back mountain were tended by the monks and grew lush and green, making it difficult for the fire to spread, it was still best to extinguish it as a precaution.

“The path has been drenched in oil,” Ye Chutang said. “Ashes, soil, and sand will be the most effective way to put it out.”

After saying this, she and Qi Yanzhou went after the attackers who had fired the hidden arrows.

Both of them possessed excellent lightness skills and keen eyesight. Even when their opponents removed their black clothing and disguised themselves as worshipers, they were easily recognized.

Seeing that they could not escape, the attackers seized worshipers and scattered themselves throughout the courtyard.

“Qi Yanzhou, let us go, or we’ll kill them!”

The worshipers they had taken hostage were all delicate young women. They immediately burst into tears.

“Waaah, I’ve only just come of age. I don’t want to die! Save me!”

“Hero, please let me go. I’ll give you all the money I have.”

“It hurts so much! I’m bleeding. I’m going to die! Help me!”

“Young Master, just let them go. Otherwise, we’ll die! Waaah…”

When Qi Yanzhou remained silent, the attackers drew their daggers across the girls’ necks, leaving shallow wounds.

Blood stained their pale robes red. Terrified, the girls cried and screamed.

The attackers looked at Qi Yanzhou provocatively, smug smiles lifting the corners of their lips.

If Qi Yanzhou ignored the worshipers’ lives, he would be accused of treating human life with contempt.

But if he let the attackers escape, his authority would also suffer.

No matter which choice he made, he would lose!

“Young Master Qi, if you don’t let us leave, these women won’t live much longer.”

Qi Yanzhou saw through the attackers’ scheme.

He knew very well that even if he let these criminals go, they would still kill the hostages.

As he considered how to protect the innocent women, Ye Chutang spoke.

“Let them go.”

The enemy’s attention was focused entirely on Qi Yanzhou, making it difficult to find an opening.

If they were allowed to leave, they would become distracted as they thought about escaping.

Ye Chutang folded her hands together, using her wide sleeves to conceal her movements.

She crushed the magpie lantern and took a high-dose anesthetic from her spatial storage. Then she applied it to the broken shards of glazed glass.

Ye Chutang moved closer to Qi Yanzhou and said again, “Let them go.”

As she spoke, she tugged on his sleeve and slipped half of the glass shards into his hand.

“They’re poisoned. Don’t cut yourself. You can use them as hidden weapons.”

Hearing Ye Chutang’s quiet warning, Qi Yanzhou immediately relaxed his fingers instead of clenching them.

He looked at the smug criminals and said, “You may leave.”

Then he turned to look at Ye Chutang.

“Atang, leave these people to me. Stay behind and check whether any of them are still alive. We may be able to find out something.”

He did not know whether these people had another trick up their sleeves, and he was worried that Ye Chutang would be in danger if she followed him.

There were warrior monks at Jing’an Temple, so it was safer for her to stay behind.

Ye Chutang knew what Qi Yanzhou was thinking and agreed.

“All right. I’ll go to the back mountain and see if there are any survivors.”

With that, she turned and left.

The six men holding the young women hostage exchanged glances and slowly began retreating.

“Get out of the way! Anyone who blocks my path dies!”

Qi Yanzhou kept his eyes fixed on the six men, searching for the right opportunity to strike.

Ye Chutang did not go to the back mountain. Instead, she hid behind a century-old tree.

Red prayer ribbons hung from its branches, swaying gently in the breeze.

She crouched down and pressed her palm to the ground. The shards of colored glass in her hand vanished, sinking into the earth.

Bluestone slabs covered the temple grounds, leaving her no opportunity to act.

Outside the temple, however, the roads were nothing but packed dirt.

The shards, coated in anesthetic, pierced through the men’s soles. The uneven road made it difficult for them to keep their balance.

The hidden archers fell to the right, while the hostages fell to the left.

Looking at the bizarre scene before him, Qi Yanzhou immediately used the shards of glass in his hand as concealed weapons, driving them into the six men’s chests.

The moment all twelve people collapsed, the uneven ground returned to normal.

After finishing her task, Ye Chutang went to the back mountain to check on the men in black she had struck with her arrows and search for survivors.

Outside Jing’an Temple, the girls who had escaped scrambled to their feet and ran into the temple, clutching the wounds on their necks.

Qi Yanzhou walked over to the six fallen men.

Three had died after the glass shards pierced their chests.

The other three were gravely injured and unconscious.

He carried the unconscious men into the temple, tied them up with red prayer ribbons, and went to find Ye Chutang.

The fire on the back mountain had already been smothered with sand.

The air was filled with the unpleasant smell of burning tar.

The monks of Jing’an Temple had found all the men in black who had been shot with arrows and placed them at the entrance to the mountain.

There were seven in total. Five were dead.

One was gravely injured and unconscious, while another had been subdued.

Ye Chutang came before the surviving man in black and tore the cloth from his face.

“Were you sent by Prince Yong or Princess Consort Yong?”

The man not only refused to answer, but spat at her.

Ye Chutang swiftly raised the cloth to block the spit, then wiped it across the man’s face.

“Ugh!”

The man gagged in disgust, his eyes filled with murderous fury.

“Keep looking at me like that, and I’ll gouge your eyes out!”

Before the man could retort, Ye Chutang used a silver needle to revive the gravely injured man.

She broke off a shard of colored glass from the shattered magpie lantern.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, she thrust it into the man’s eye.

As his piercing screams rang out, Abbot Minghui murmured, “Amitabha.”

Ye Chutang paid no attention to the compassionate abbot. She seized the blind man by the throat.

“Speak. Who sent you?”

The man struggled to breathe. His eyes bulged, and his face turned the color of pig’s liver.

“No… no one.”

“If you refuse to tell the truth, your family will suffer. I won’t take their lives, but I’ll sell the men to brothels and the women into prostitution!”

Fear appeared in the man’s one remaining good eye.

He believed that with Qi Yanzhou’s abilities, finding his family would be easy.

“You… you’re a living Bodhisattva. You… you can’t…”

Before he could finish, Ye Chutang tightened her grip and cut off his words.

“I’m a Bodhisattva to the good and a demon of vengeance to the wicked!”

With that, she snapped the man’s neck.

Then she flung away the corpse in disgust and broke off another shard of glass.

Through the colorful shard, Ye Chutang looked at the man who had finally stopped gagging.

“Tell me the truth, and I’ll spare your family.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Qi Yanzhou arrived at the back mountain.

He strode over to Ye Chutang and took the sharp shard from her hand.

“Atang, don’t waste your time on him. Someone has already confessed. Kill him.”

When he took the shard from her, his fingers gave hers a slight squeeze.

Ye Chutang understood that Qi Yanzhou was lying to pressure the man, so she played along.

“Will you do it, or shall I?”

“I’ll do it.”

Before Qi Yanzhou could throw the shard, the man shouted, “It was Princess Consort Yong!”

The shard was thrown anyway.

It ​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‍skimmed past the man’s neck, drawing a line of blood.

Qi Yanzhou walked up to the terrified man and looked down at him.

“Tell me Princess Consort Yong’s exact plan. I’ll compare it with the other confession and see whether anyone is lying.”

The man told him everything, not daring to leave out a single detail.

Princess Consort Yong had wanted to avenge Zhao Sirui, whose arms and legs had been severed. She had therefore asked her family to hire several martial artists from the jianghu to follow Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang and wait for a chance to strike.

After the martial artists followed the two of them to Jing’an Temple, they knew their opportunity had arrived.

They had originally intended to sneak up the mountain and assassinate them.

Unfortunately, they were unfamiliar with the mountain paths.

Not only did they stumble along the way, but they also kept making noise.

So they stole cooking oil from the kitchen and poured it over the mountain path.

Then they hid in the woods, intending to kill their targets with arrows.

The plan had gone perfectly, but they had underestimated Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang’s martial skills.

They had been defeated instead, and the mission had failed.

Their companions had started the fire only to create an opportunity to escape, but they had been captured all the same.

After hearing the confession, Qi Yanzhou turned to Abbot Minghui.

“Abbot, please send these criminals to the authorities. Tell them that my wife and I were ambushed at Jing’an Temple and that Princess Consort Yong was the mastermind. Ask the prefect to investigate thoroughly.”

Abbot Minghui placed his right hand, with its strand of prayer beads, before his chest and inclined his head slightly.

“Amitabha. I’ll make the arrangements at once.”

He then summoned the warrior monks and had them escort all the men in black to the prefectural office.

Ye Chutang took out a thousand-tael banknote and handed it to the abbot, who looked every bit like an enlightened monk.

“Jing’an Temple suffered because of Azhou and me. Please accept this modest donation for incense and temple offerings.”

Abbot Minghui looked at Ye Chutang, an unfathomable meaning hidden in his eyes.

After a long while, he had one of his disciples accept the donation.

“Madam Qi, your merit is boundless. You are destined for a bright and glorious future.”

Ye Chutang had thought the abbot might say something about her having returned from the dead, but he had offered her a blessing instead.

She smiled. “I’ll take your word for it, Abbot.”

With that, she and Qi Yanzhou left Jing’an Temple hand in hand.

Abbot Minghui watched her retreating figure and murmured, “She is destined to become a phoenix.”

The senior disciple behind him had not heard clearly.

“Master, what did you say?”

“Nothing. There are many worshippers tonight. Have the warrior monks keep a close watch and make sure nothing else happens.”

“Yes, Master.”

Remembering the injured female worshippers, Abbot Minghui arranged for the monks skilled in medicine to treat them.

By then, however, Ye Chutang had already applied medicine to the six injured girls.

She had also asked a monk to write down a prescription for removing scars.

In addition, she had given each of the six girls a fifty-tael banknote as compensation.

The girls, who had initially felt resentful at being caught up in the incident, were now filled with gratitude.

After all, an ordinary family could not earn fifty taels even in two years!